ViennEast investor outlook: the Austrian presidential election

Forecast: Government instability and therefore competitive decline will continue regardless of the outcome of the Austrian presidential election

On 24 April, the candidate of the far-right Freedom Party (Freiheitliche Partei Österreichs: FPÖ), Norbert Hofer, won the first round of the presidential elections with 35% of the vote. This was unexpected, as the polls had consistently indicated that he would win approximately 25%. Alexander van der Bellen – a nominally independent, centre-left candidate whose campaign was predominantly financed by the Green Party – came a distant second with 21% of the vote. The two candidates will face one another in a runoff vote on 22 May.